Barclays bank gives mobile security software to customers

Barclays is giving its online banking customers free software to protect against mobile and PC security threats. It says it's the first UK bank to offer mobile security software. Barclays mobile banking is available online at http://barclays.mobi/ [Source: Mobile News]

President Obama to keep BlackBerry

In November we reported that Barack Obama would give up his BlackBerry when he became president - but now it seems he'll be hanging on to it. His email address will remain confidential, his email addresses will apparently be designed not to be forwarded... and pretty much everything he says will be archived. [Sources: NYTimes.com; Seattle Times]

4giv me fathR...

The Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, who heads a church of around 12 million Orthodox Christians in Egypt and another 4 million elsewhere, has banned priests from taking confessions over the phone and has also banned monks in Coptic monasteries from using mobiles. Pope Shenouda III says there is a chance that telephones are monitored, meaning that the confessions could possibly be overheard by state security, according to news reports. He also said that monks were supposed to be secluded from the world when in monasteries, which is why he'd banned the use of mobiles by monks but had allowed monastery administrators to keep their phones. [Source: Cellular-News.com]

Germans use mobiles to control street lights

The village of Doerentrup in Germany is using mobile phones to save electricity and reduce carbon emissions. Street lamps are switched off at 9pm but local residents who've registered their mobile phones with the council can call a special access code to switch individual street lights on for 15 minutes. [Source: BBC News video, audio]

Mobile security worth $889 million in 2011

Market research firm Infonetics Research says by 2011 mobile networks will have spent $889 million on security appliances and software to protect themselves. It says the increasing popularity of mobile data is driving investment in networks and data centres while an increasing number of security threats are driving the need for improved security. [Press release]

Smarter phones mean more security risks

Mobile messaging company Airwide Solutions says European mobile phone customers are now receiving 21.3% more unwanted text messages than they did last year - with France suffering a 61.3% increase. [Press release]

Control your home with a Nokia phone

Nokia is developing a 'smart home' platform - the Nokia Home Control Center - that'll let users monitor and control their home via mobile phone or PC. Consumers can monitor and control their electricity usage and security systems, either from within the home or remotely. The first products are expected by the end of 2009. [Press release]

Barack Obama to give up his BlackBerry?

Never mind his plans to change the world... the current story on everyone's lips is the likelihood that US President-elect Barack Obama is going to stop using a BlackBerry when he takes office. Despite wearing the device on his belt during much of his election campaign and frequently sending messages to friends, he's likely to ditch mobile email when he takes office in January. Not only is security a risk, his messages would all be recorded under the Presidential Records Act. But he wouldn't be the first president to stop using personal email. Current president George W Bush sent his friends an email before entering the White House eight years ago, explaining that he was going to stop corresponding in cyberspace because he didn't want to risk any private conversations being published. [Source: NYTimes.com]

This week's Mobile News podcast now online

This week's Mobile News podcast is now available to download. In our main feature, Iain Graham talks to Ben Whitaker from Masabi about mobile payments and mobile tickets. Mark Bridge and James Rosewell join Iain to discuss the latest mobile industry headlines - plus there's a preview of the Motorola Aura. As usual, you can download or listen free at TheFonecast.com and on the Mobile News website... and you'll find us on iTunes and via RSS too.

Android G1 security flaw spotted

Security researchers say they've found a flaw in the Android-powered T-Mobile G1 smart phone. Charlie Miller of Independent Security Evaluators says he's notified Google about the flaw; Google has responded by saying it's aware of the problem and is working with T-Mobile and HTC to distribute its solution to the problem. Apparently the flaw centres on the phone's web browser, which could allow a rogue website to capture information entered on the keyboard when visiting other sites. [Sources: Press release; NYTimes.com]

T-Mobile lost information about 17 million German customers in 2006

Rather belatedly, Deutsche Telekom has admitted that its T-Mobile subsidiary in Germany had confidential data about 17 million customers stolen in 2006. The missing information included telephone numbers, dates of birth, postal addresses and email addresses. The company says it's now reinforced security procedures and has no evidence that the missing data has been misused. [Sources: Yahoo.com; DW-World.de]

20% of second-hand mobiles contain sensitive data

New research from BT, the University of Glamorgan and Edith Cowan University in Australia has revealed that a significant number of second-hand portable communication devices still contain sensitive company and personal information. The survey of over 160 used devices found a range of information including salary details, financial company data, bank account details, business plans, meeting details and personal medical information. BlackBerry devices were found to contain the greatest amount of unprotected data; 43% contained information that could identify organisations or individuals. [Press release]

Nokia to sell security business

Nokia says it's planning to sell its security equipment business and is also going to stop making its own enterprise software. [Press release]

Use your mobile to unlock your car

Mobil manufacturer Sharp and Japan's DoCoMo network have created a mobile phone that incorporates Nissan's Intelligent Key system, which will enable it to unlock compatible Nissan cars made since 2002. (No, not all of them). It's only a prototype at the moment, with commercial production expected in 2009. [Source: Cellular-News.com]

55,000 mobiles left in London taxis... in 6 months

A survey from security software company Credant Technologies says 55,843 mobile phones and 6,193 other mobile storage devices, including laptops and MP3 players, have been left in London taxis by careless customers in the last six months. 80% of the taxi drivers surveyed said the owners were eventually reunited with their lost items - a considerably higher figure than in New York. [Source: BBC.co.uk]

India plans new rules for mobile phone purchase

Indians may soon need to get 'references' from two existing mobile phone customers if they want a new connection. The Economic Times reports that the Ministry of Home Affairs is likely to advise the country's Department of Telecommunication to implement the new rules in an attempt to improve security and reduce criminal activity. New customers may also be photographed by the retailer. [Source: Economic Times]

Java security flaw on Nokia Series 40 phones?

Security Explorations, a new security research company based in Poland, says it's found two security problems in the mobile Java technology used by Nokia in its Series 40 devices. This covers over 140 handset models. The security flaw apparently lets hackers install malicious programs on a mobile phone without the customer being aware. These could send messages, make calls and give access to any information stored on the phone. The company has not published full details online but is selling a technical report to interested parties. [Press release]

Sri Lanka requires mobile users to carry proof of ownership

The Sri Lankan government is introducing new security legislation that will require mobile phone users to carry a certificate of ownership and will prevent them them from using phones belonging to other people. The country's Telecommunication Regulatory Authority said users would have to carry a letter from their mobile phone provider confirming the person carrying the phone is the owner of the SIM card. In addition, customers using CDMA technology - which is sold in Sri Lanka as a home telephone service, although it can be used wirelessly - will be restricted to using their phones at their registered address. [Source: SundayTimes.lk]

BlackBerry warns of PDF security risk

BlackBerry's parent company Research in Motion has warned corporate customers about a security flaw. Hackers using a malicious PDF document sent to a BlackBerry could take control of a computer on the company network. [Security release]

Mobile virus attacks increasing

Mobile security company AdaptiveMobile says the number of mobile virus attacks is increasing . In particular, they mention the CommWarrior (Nokia Series 60) and Beselo (Symbian) viruses as requiring particular caution. One network that uses AdaptiveMobile has seen a rise in virus attacks from just 0.5% of all messages to 6% over the last 12 months. The network says it now deals with 100,000 virus incidences a day, up from 70,000 in one year. [Press release]